CPC expels 3 officials for drunk driving

The Communist Party of China (CPC) has expelled three officials of central state organs for drunk driving, the Party's disciplinary watchdog said on Friday.

The three are Du Shaomu, former head of a publishing house of China's annual economic report under the Development Research Center of the State Council, Li Xiaobing, a former official with a social development center for rural areas under the Ministry of Agriculture, and Zhang Chaoqing, a member of staff with the service center of the Supreme People's Procuratorate.

Du and Zhang's drunk driving caused traffic accidents in March and January this year respectively. They were taken into custody for two months, according to a statement posted on the website of the CPC Central Commission for Discipline and Inspection.

Li was involved in a road accident in June, 2011. He fled immediately after the incident, but was caught soon after. He was taken into custody for six months and fined 5,000 yuan ($806).

The statement urged all Party members to observe laws and disciplinary codes, vowing severe punishment for any violations.